The Hunter Becomes The Hunted
by Dave Johnson -Dav Strife
Summary: Xiaolin Showdown,Kingdom Hearts,Slight RE cross! Zalak was once the most powerful demon and all round evil guy in all worlds. But since he reverted from being Akima to plain old Zalak he has made some rather powerful enemies, some he is not even aware of!
1. Ironic Evil

The Hunter Becomes The Hunted

Chapter 1: Ironic Evil

Cross Information: This is a Kingdom Hearts (Based on The Balance Between Dark and Light by Dav Strife which was written by me) / Xiaolin Showdown (Based on The Time Has Come by Smurf-Chan) crossover. Just to make it clear this is majorly a Kingdom Hearts fic because Dav Strife is usually found in my other KH fics basd on his adventures. It is crossed with Xiaolin Showdown because of the other characters Zen and Zalak who appear in the 'The Time Has Come". These two characters have since been used in KH as well besides this fic and in other crossovers. The RE or Resident Evil element comes into play later on so stay tuned!

Authors Notes: Hey everyone I decided to do a fic which included both my Balance character (Dav Strife), Dark Lord Sigma's character (Ashura Dragoon) and MASmaster Zalak's character (Zalak). This is a combination of humour and action which I find to work best, let me know what you think. This on some sort of timeline would take place well after KH2's events. I changed Dav's weapons because I wanted to so there! But some people may notice that his weapons are similar to Virgil's in Devil May Cry 3 but I assure you, purely coincidence. The demons towards the end I did take from DMC3 and they are known as 'The Fallen' in the game. This chapter is dedicated to Dark and MAS, thanks guys.

Author Credit: Thanks to both Dark Lord Sigma and MASmaster Zalak for their contributions (Dark for Ashura in my fic and MAS for Zalak in 'The Time Has Come'). Finally thanks to you all who read this, many other characters will be included later on.

Story Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts belongs to Square Enix, Xaiolin Showdown belongs to Christy Hui and Devil May Cry 3 belongs to Capcom (from which I borrowed Demon models). Zalak and Asura Dragoon are property of Dark and MAS resepctively and Dav Strife belongs to me.

--

Through out time villains have risen and fallen, evil and twisted fools try to take over a world and then fail at the hands of a warrior or sage of light. It is the textbook tale of good versus evil. This tale however throws that concept out of the window and into the sea of unpredictability.

Deep in the confines of a mountainous lair a man of the dark plots his ascension to the lordship of the world. Instead of plotting to destroy an adversary of good, he plots to eliminate his competition. Nothing ruins the plans of a powerful super genius faster than a reincarnated demon from the darkest regions of hell. Rayden has spent many years compiling dossiers on all things good and evil, biding his time to find the biggest threat to his plans and eliminate them.

In his command he has skilled assassins, murderous mercenaries, frightening foot soldiers and demonic spawns of hell that are forced to do his bidding. He is a master of the dark arts as well as the laboratory and a feared battlefield tactician. Yet he fears a single demon that exists on a backwater world known as 'Astanta', the land of mysterious artefacts known as Shen-Gong-Wu but they do not concern him, only Akima incarnate, Zalak Taijiya. Rayden has all the information on the demon that he could possibly need, from his fight with the original 'Xiaolin Dragons' in his past right down to his hate towards his brother Zen. Can Zalak defeat the threat by himself or will he have to seek help…?

--

Zalak was slumped into a saggy, beaten up old arm chair inside Chase Young's lair on the world of Astanta. His day had started out slow and it didn't get any faster. His master was too busy training his latest recruit again, leaving no time for his other protégés. Everyone else went hunting for the mystical Shen-Gong-Wu, leaving him alone and bored out of his evil mind. He was fed up with his dark room (which he quite liked but was as boring as everything else in Chase's maze like dwelling). Stretching out to get rid of aches he headed for the exit and went outside into the sunlight. Looking around the idyllic view he decided on exploring a forest just south of the lair, hoping to find something to kill or torture just for the sheer fun of it. The forest was large, the trees rising sixty feet in the air and the canopy blocking out any sunlight from above.

Ten minutes of aimless wondering later he stopped and stared and the green roof of leaves above him, grinning slightly at the thought of killing his brother slowly and painfully. Something caught his attention, a simple summer breeze rustling the leaves of the forest but something else was there watching him. He threw quick glances all around him but saw nothing despite his superior sight and he began to grin at the thought of a fight. Without warning twenty zip lines fell from the trees and above and men clad in black stealth suits and red goggles emerged and surrounded Zalak, each one of them packing a fully automatic machine gun. All twenty aimed for him and cocked their guns ready to lay waste to him.

Zalak laughed and then melted away into his own shadow as the soldiers opened fire at him. They all looked around confused until the demon reappeared out one of the soldier's shadows and put one arm around his neck and reached for his machine gun with the other. He let loose the machine gun fire on the soldiers all the while using his hostage as a bullet shield. Ten were cut down before the gun finally spent its deadly load and clicked violently. In one fluid motion Zalak snapped the dying soldier's neck with one arm and threw the empty gun at another, hitting him right in the face knocking him to the ground. He then charged the nearest enemy who had produced a knife and thrust it at Zalak but he grabbed the arm, swung the man around and kneed him in the back snapping his spinal column. The knife he flung at another which caught him in the neck and he dropped dead. Three more advanced on him with knives drawn but they were soon dispatched with massive blow to the first's head, a second's neck being twisted 360 degrees and obviously snapping and the last dropping to the floor after he was impaled by his own knife. The final four soldiers met similar fates at the hands or should I say claws of the demon.

Zalak stood amid the carnage, both happy at the sight of the bodies and the blood but at the same time confused about being attacked. He turned around to find a long brown haired man dressed in a black suit laughing at how easily his men were disposed of.

"Hahaha…well it seems I picked the right person, or should I say demon to get rid of, wouldn't you agree?" He asked while grinning darkly.

"What the hell are you talkin' about?" Zalak growled, not liking this guy one bit.

"Forgive me, my name is Philip Rayden and I plan to take over all worlds in time. From my extensive research I have concluded that you my demon friend are the biggest threat to my plans and must be disposed of. Nice to have met you though, rest in peace… Mwahahaha" As he laughed he held both hands above his head and they pulsated with shadowy energy.

Three demons rose from the ground ready to do their commander's bidding. They each were tall brown demons with large white angel wings; a ferocious face staring and gnashing from their stomachs. Their arms were large with muscles and a large blue sword in their left hand's that could slice any person in two. Rayden disappeared as the angel demons let forth an ear piercing scream and circled above Zalak's head in the air. Without thinking Zalak pulled the only thing that resembled a weapon from his belt, The Golden Tiger Claws. He swiped them madly in the air and jumped through the portal it created, the demons however followed him through.

--

Zalak landed with a thud on a road that lead down toward a beach and a small pier. Along the road sat white panelled houses with small brown fences separating them from their neighbours. He got back onto his feet and looked in the air. Sure enough the three hideous winged demons intent on ripping him apart were getting ever closer. He sprinted with great speed down the road with the Angel of Death trio perusing him. He sped past the houses without looking at then until a flash of blonde caught his attention and he slowed to get a better view of the blonde. Sure enough a spiky blonde haired teen was cleaning the barrel of one of his guns and an older man repeatedly punching the hell out of a boxing bag. Zalak couldn't believe his bad luck, first being attacked by soldiers, then chased by psycho demons and now thrown into one of his greatest enemy's home world. Never the less he jogged up the fence of the garden casually despite the demons drawing ever closer and he waved at the blonde.

"Hey there Spiky, whassup?"

"……What the… How did you…" As Dav continued to babble about Zalak's sudden appearance Ashura walked into the front garden and pointed toward the dangerously close demons.

"Relatives Zalak? I can see the family resemblance…" He mused grinning at his own wisecrack.

"NO…… they are after me…how do I say this… god damn I'll never live this down… Help?" Zalak said, going strangely quiet with the last word.

"Meh, fine, only because they might threaten the Islands when they kill you…" Dav said while glaring at Zalak.

Zalak noticed as Dav stood up that he was no longer sporting a huge Buster Sword but now had a samurai sword resting in a sheath which was propped up against the house and a broadsword sheathed on his back (slightly larger than a regular one but far smaller than his previous Great Blade). Ashura had his usual Gauntlets and Armguards but resting within his forearm guards were two long blades that revealed themselves at the users discretion.

The demon followed his temporary allies to where the demons were and engaged them. Ashura reached the demons first and tried to land a punch on the stomach's face but its wings wrapped around it to protect the face from harm. They then shot open which sent him flying to the other side of the road.

Dav was having about the same amount of luck as the melee warrior as he tried to attack the larger of his opponent's faces with his broadsword but again was repelled by the wings. Zalak jumped directly over his demon adversary's attack and punched it in the back causing to jerk forward but then turn in mid fall and thrust its sword at him. Moving to the side of the attack he jumped at the demon and kicked it in its smaller undefended head which wailed angrily. Ashura was back on his feet in an instant and two blades sprung from within his armguards and he charged the unusual demon. Following Zalak's method he stabbed for the smaller head but this was blocked by the huge blue sword it was carrying. He repeated the move and the demon blocked the attack again but it was merely a distraction. He sent his other forearm blade through its chest and the face on it. It shrieked as the blade drew black blood from within the demon. It lashed out with its sword desperately which Ashura blocked and then jumped back to avoid another strike.

Dav took a different approach to beating the tough demon by striking for its wings. His opponent charged forward using its wing as a weapon which Dav blocked with his sword's sheath he was carrying. He then clubbed its wings numerous times with the sheath with horizontal strikes, hoping to cause damage. The wings were like tough leather and his attacks did little damage as it attacked again. Drawing itself back it charged full steam at Dav with another wing attack but he jumped clear and the wing missed his head by millimetre. Instantly drawing his Samurai Sword he held the hilt with both hands and with one lightning quick horizontal slash tore a huge gash in its wing and just about tore it in two. It faltered slightly but then swung its blue sword above its head and down at Dav who rolled away. He proceeded to slash its other wing to hell. A last piercing strike from Zantetsuken dropped the demon to the floor and it disappeared in a small flash of light as Ashura's did a few seconds earlier.

Zalak used his enemy's moment of dizziness to his advantage and delivered two swift kicks to its stomach and a fist to its head. It floated high into the air and threw its sword like a javelin at Zalak who avoided with ease. He smirked at the inaccuracy of the shot but the demon cried out angrily and the sword exploded sending Zalak crashing against a mailbox. He growled in frustration at the demon and his eyes flashed black for a second, he extended his left arm and shouted "Shadow Shockwave". A ball of pure black energy swept toward the demon. It pulled its wings in to protect its stomach but the attack passed straight through the wings and collided with the chest. It wailed for the last time and slammed against the floor and disappeared. As he stood up he saw both Ashura and Dav glaring at him, Dav had his left hand on the hilt of his broadsword ready to draw at any moment and Ashura held in his hands a shotgun.

"Umm… Uh ho…" Zalak stated staring down the barrel of the shotgun.

--

"Okay, tell me from the top, why you are here?" Dav questioned while putting a cup of coffee down on the table in front Zalak (who stared at it debating to himself if Dav or Ashura had put poison in it).

"Well… I was walking through a forest near the lair looking for something to 'play' with when soldiers attacked me and so I killed 'em!" Zalak explained, taking a sip from the coffee and deciding he liked it.

"Figures" Ashura added quietly

"Anyway, this weird girly guy appeared and said…" Zalak imitated the sinister voice of Rayden "You must be eliminated because you are so good lucking and great and strong…"

"Get to the point" Dav interjected impatiently

"… Forgive me, my name is Philip Rayden and I plan to take over all worlds in time. From my extensive research I have concluded that you my demon friend are biggest threat to my plans and must be disposed of. Nice to have met you though, rest in peace….Mwahahahahahahahaha…" Zalak finished drawing out the laugh to sound evil.

"Interesting, but how did you reach this world?" Ashura asked, still wary of the Akima incarnate drinking HIS special and very expensive brand of coffee.

"These" He said producing the Tiger claws and putting them on his hand for the fighters to see.

"This is one of those Shen-Gong-Who from your world right?" Dav asked looking at the Claws with interest.

"Shen-Gong-Wu" Zalak corrected

"Whatever" Dav said sarcastically "Well, we helped you so you can help yourself and clear off" he added.

"Sorry, can't, they only work on our world or from our world to another but not vice versa"

"Hmm… it appears you are stuck with us" Ashura said while deep in thought. "We cannot take you back in our ship either, Cid is supposed to be coming to fix it next week"

"Can you... help me then?" Zalak asked, nearly gagging at saying that word again.

"Why should we?" Dav asked uninterested. "We now work as mercenaries, not a charity especially when it comes to you"

"This guy wants me dead and then he's gonna take over the world. Don't think of this as helping me but the existence of these Islands!" Zalak responded with a satisfied grin.

"He has a point Dav, you can't deny that"

"Well Ashura, I can't deny you're a smart ass too!"

"It's settled then…" Zalak said, inwardly kicking himself for teaming with spiky and Drag-oon"

"On one condition then Zalak, we go and enlist the help of your brother Zen. He's good in battle and maybe he can keep you in line" Dav said grinning

"WHA?"


	2. Demon Days

The Hunter Becomes the Hunted

Chapter 2: Demon Days

Authors Notes: I was going to wait a while before posting another chapter but I like writing it so here we go, round two with this chapter featuring both Zalak and Zen.

Author Credit: As always thanks to MASmaster Zalak for Zalak and Dark Lord Sigma for Ashura and Zen and to you the guys who read this.

Story Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts belongs to Square Enix, Xaiolin Showdown belongs to Christy Hui and Devil May Cry 3 belongs to Capcom (from which I borrowed Demon models). Zalak, Zen and Ashura Dragoon are property of Dark and MAS resepctively and Dav Strife belongs to me.

--

Dead leaves danced elegantly in the summer breeze as Zen stood among the many training targets of his current temple. His long, sharp katana blade shone in the sunlight as he clutched it tensely in his hand. He raised it to shoulder height and then charged quickly at a straw mannequin and then with great speed and power cleaved it in half with his deadly blade. As he stood at the other side of the straw dummy the top half slowly slid off the bottom, landing on the floor gently. In one quick diagonal slice a second fell to his sword again cut in half as if it was paper being cut my a chainsaw! Zen jumped high into the air and landed just short of another with his katana out stretched. It pierced the dummy's torso and then he dragged the blade upwards and out through the head which chopped the upper body in half. Relaxing his grip on his weapon and he looked down to the floor slowly and closed his eyes, feeling the breeze gently on his neck.

He lifted his head quickly and twelve skeletons clad in black robes stood all around him. Their heads was positioned as if each demon had a hump in the upper back but they were dangerous in any case. Each one carried either a spiked rod or a sickle with a long thin blade. Two however collapsed to the ground and turned into sand as if it was melting slowly away. A few feet away from the demons Dav Strife stood with one of his guns in his hand and its barrel smoking. Ashura stood next to him rolling his head causing his neck bones to crack slightly and then pounded his fists together warming up. Without questioning what was going on Zen leapt over the demon horde and landed gracefully next to the mercenaries. A shattering sound filled their ears and several more of the demons appeared out of thin air bringing their enemies numbers to at least twenty.

Ashura leapt forward and landed a fist into the first demon's face which pretty much cracked the bone and the body fell away into sand. Dav was next to attack as he charged forward with Zantetsuken held low at his side still in its sheath. As he reached his target he used his thumb to push on the hand guard and his sword unsheathed slightly. With great speed he unsheathed the deadly Samurai sword and with one horizontal swipe two of the Reaper demons were cut in half who again crumbled into sand. Zen followed suit by slamming the hilt of his weapon into one enemy's skull and then driving his knee into its frail stomach. A second crept up behind him and raised its rod to club him but with his back still to his enemy he reversed his sword and drove the blade through the rib cage.

Dav cut it into four pieces before sheathing his sword and then he drew his guns once again. He pounded three further demons with hot lead which ripped into their bones and snapped them. Ashura leg swept an enemy and then drove his boot through its skull harshly. He then produced a shotgun he kept on his back and fired two scatter shells through a group of three that turned to sand almost instantly. A back kick dispatched a fifth and then an Arm Blade to the spinal column killed off a sixth demon. Zen and Dav now stood back to back as they took out demon after demon with ease. Zen arced his sword at a Reaper's head and then delivered a side slash to another across the ribcage. Dav spun his now drawn Broadsword over his head and brought it crashing down atop an enemy's cranium and then swiping upwards in a combination move; taking out a second with no effort. The last few demons fell in seconds to Dav and Zen's swordplay skills and Ashura's combined martial art skills and shotgun blasts. Zen put his katana into its sheath and then nodded to Dav who replaced his Broadsword on his back. Ashura loaded a new set of shells into his powerful close range weapon. He flung it over his back with its shoulder strap and then looked at the sand all over the place.

Zen was about to speak when a shrill cackling echoed throughout the entire area and a much larger Reaper demon appeared in the area above them. It then disappeared in a dark flash and reappeared in front of the warriors who all took unarmed battle stances as they watched the demon move. It was much larger than the previous demons and its Scythe was three times bigger with a glowing purple blade. Inside its mouth and eye sockets a light blue glow emanated signalling powerful summoning magic. The three again drew their weapons and prepared for the battle that was to come.

The Vanguard was the first to make its move as it raised its Scythe high above its head with both hands on the staff of the weapon. It brought it down powerfully at Zen who held his katana in a defensive position as the Scythe came down to meet his head. The blade of the weapon collided with the katana and then rose again in the air and then down at the sword again. This time however it hit solid ground as Ashura jumped and shoved Zen out of the way of the powerful strike. Undeterred the Vanguard swung its weapon in a quicker less powerful arc at Dav who jumped backwards barely avoiding the strike. Turning its blade in mid air the demon swung its Scythe horizontally catching Zen in the arm which tore a cut in his skin. Drawing Zantetsuken Dav charged at it with his sword held at his side again.

The Hell Vanguard shrieked a battle cry while holding its Scythe in one hand above its head. It disappeared in a shadowy blast of energy and did not reappear. Dav and Ashura both relaxed but Zen stayed on guard.

"Well, that was unpredictable" Dav stated with a sigh

"Indeed, for it to disappear like that was unusual" Ashura confirmed

"No… it hasn't gone, its still here, as if it's playing with us" Zen growled as he clutched his custom katana tensely.

As if on cue it came charging quickly at all three of the combatants spinning its Scythe wildly. Zen gained a further blow to the head by the staff of the demon's scythe which knocked him to the floor unconscious. Ashura and Dav both rolled out of the way in time but Dav was caught by a further Hell Gate attack when ripples in the ground formed below him and the Vanguard came charging upwards. It drove the Scythes blade across Dav's chest and sent him careening into a large rock which knocked him also out cold. Ashura landed a spinning back punch to the demon's head but it hardly flinched as it charged wildly around the battlefield. The familiar sound of shattering glass made his situation worse as several Black Robed Reapers and more powerful Red Robed Reapers appeared around him. Seeing both Dav and Zen out for the count the demons attacked Ashura all at once.

As the demons swarmed around him he punched, kicked and head butted anything he could although it did little to help. Dav staggered to his feet and realised Ashura was in trouble but then noticed that both his swords and guns were too far away from him. He jumped straight into the middle of a large group of enemies and began to pound everything he could. One Reaper swung its Scythe at him but he ducked, grabbed the shaft and swung it around with its owner still latched onto the end. It went crashing into several others who all crumbled into sand upon impact. Ashura leapt over to join Dav in the space he had cleared and nodded to him.

"Plan B right?"

"Yeah"

The two mercenaries were stood back to back facing the demon enemies. Dav had his hand closed into a fist and was charging up some of his magical energies. Ashura had two fingers extended and was also gathering his rarely used magical energies. The blonde fighter pressed his fist into the palm of his other hand and lightning arced around his hands. Ashura tapped his right leg with his fingers and his leg gained the same energy charge. In a double move Ashura leapt forward and kicked a few minor demons away. His partner meanwhile punched the air in front of him and a powerful Thundaga spell struck all in front of him.

Zen then ran over to them after finally waking up and threw Dav his weapons back which were laid by him. Things were starting to look up for them as a portal appeared to the left of their position and Zalak came jumping out complete with Tiger Claws. After joining the others the four turned to face the Vanguard but instead of one two now floated flanked by a pair of Angels of Death. The demons floated round the four and surrounded them in a box shape formation, one demon per warrior. Ashura and Dav both rolled under the levitating demons and stood ready to fight as a team.

"You ready?" Dav asked confidently.

"Yes, our training is bound to have paid off by the end of this" Ashura confirmed along with a nod.

"Aaawww, how sweet" Zalak taunted while grinning at the demons maniacally.

"Shut up, lets just get them" Zen growled at his brother.

Meanwhile Dav had confronted the first Vanguard by swiping Zantetsuken at it which it blocked with its Scythe and they began to battle for the upper hand. Just as the Vanguard's superior strength began to win Dav ducked and Ashura came flying over him and planted a powerful kick into the demon's face. Wailing it thrashed about with its Scythe but Dav blocked any shots with both his swords while Ashura looked for openings and exploited them. After an extra three body blows and a face kick Dav stuck his broadsword into the ground and Ashura picked it up and began to block any Scythe strokes with it. Dav who was now a safe distance away held Zantetsuken at his side and dashed at the preoccupied demon with the intent to kill. As he reached the demon Ashura offered one hand as a boost and Dav soared over it and landed behind it, plunging his sword into its back. It wailed for the last time and finally crumbled into dust like so many demons before it. They then turned to one of the Angels which was creeping up on them with its blue sword above its head.

Across the battlefield Zen and Zalak had taken one demon each rather than work together. Zen clashed swords with the Angel while its central face hissed angrily at him. He ducked a high swipe and then leapt backwards over a low strike. Not having the same experience fighting this kind of demon he slashed at its chest but the wings blocked the attack and attempted to thwack him back. But he was too quick and drove his sword into the smaller head causing it to wail madly before vanishing, defeated. The last Hell Vanguard tried to strike Zalak with its Hell Gate attack but be back flipped multiple times to avoid every strike. On his last flip he used his momentum to spring forwards and double kick the giant reaper straight in the face. To defeat it Zalak formed dark energy in both hands and leapt at the demon, ripping straight through it like it was paper. It crumpled to sand as he landed behind grinning again and then looked to his brother who was watching Dav and Ashura finish the demon they were facing. Before they were able to regroup a familiar evil villain appeared in the middle of the group who were scattered across the training grounds. Rayden stood with confidence as the four surrounded him, despite Zen having no idea who he was. He was holding a Double Edged Thief Sword called 'Viper'. It had a black hilt with dark blue blades at either end.

"You really are becoming an annoyance Strife, you too Dragoon" He said with much indifference to the odds.

"Ready to die?" Zalak retorted as Rayden turned to face him.

"You have friends then, I see. Or at least people to help you but still, you will die" As Zalak and Rayden conversed or rather yelled angrily all three warriors behind charged him, two from the sides and one from the back. Dav brought Zantetsuken down at him but he sidestepped the attack, kicked him hard in the face and then in the chest which sent him across the field and into a pile of broken mannequins. Ashura went for a body blow but Rayden used the sword to whack Ashura into the distance with the blunt edge of his blade. Finally Zen swiped at his head but he received a sidekick to the stomach and then an uppercut to the face. Zalak looked at Rayden surprised as the evil genius smirked at his opponents' quick downfall.

"I'll leave you for now Zalak but be warned you will die by my hand and these fools will perish for simply crossing my path. Farewell"

"……"


	3. The More the Murcier!

The Hunter Becomes The Hunted

Chapter 3: The More the Murcier!

Authors Notes: After a long wait here is chapter 3! I had to repost this so I lost all reviews that it had but never mind! If no one works out what the chapter means the clue is in the MURC part as in Mercenaries are called that for short. So I thought I'd botch the famous phrase 'The More The Merrier'.

Author Credit: As always thanks to MASmaster Zalak for Zalak and Dark Lord Sigma for Ashura and Zen and to you the guys who read this.

Story Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts belongs to Square Enix, Xaiolin Showdown belongs to Christy Hui and Devil May Cry 3 belongs to Capcom (from which I borrowed Demon models). Zalak, Zen and Ashura Dragoon are property of Dark and MAS resepctively and Dav Strife and the one hit wonder enemies belong to me.

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"One, two… three, four" Dav yelled almost happily as he cut through opponent after opponent with his Great Blade. After the brief fight with Rayden the group had then gone into investigating who Rayden actually is. They were eventually lead to a cavern where demons had been seen appearing more and more, but not just any demons. Reapers, Angels and Hell Vanguards. Once the group had arrived they were instantly attacked by an influx of demonic defenders so Dav and Zalak had stayed outside to do battle with whatever appeared while Zen and Ashura went inside to scout around.

"Why couldn't we go inside and leave the easy job to the other two.." Dav moaned as Zalak punched his way through a reaper's rib cage.

"Meh, so long as we kill things" Zalak retorted lazily.

"Well, it looks like the demons are gonna stop coming soon because they are getting fewer in number"

"He isn't here" Zalak informed Dav as he kicked the last of his demonic opponents away.

"How can you tell?"

"The demons, they'd want to protect him from us so there would be more of 'em"

"Good point…. I never thought I'd say that to you.."

"……."

"Whats up?"

"Him!"

"Huh?"

Dav looked to where Zalak was staring at and saw a tall brown haired man with a long bladed scimitar in his right hand and a Gauntlet on his left. He smirked and then jumped down off his place on top a large rock.

"My name is Zott… I am pleased to make your acquaintance" He said as he bowed to Dav and Zalak.

"I know you… a merc, right?" Dav replied while watching the new fighter carefully.

"Indeed, I am in the employment of Mr. Rayden and have been ordered to deal with the meddlers…"

"Sorry pal, your life ends here" Zalak mocked as Zott grinned slyly.

"You pathetic demon, you do not know what I am capable of"

"Well, you don't know what WE are capable of…" Dav responded quickly.

"Hmm… allow me to show you a trick Mr Rayden has taught me…. TAKE THIS!"

Zott raised his left hand and a lime green ball of light flew straight at Zalak and wrapped around him like a snake. Zalak struggled against his bonds but couldn't get free.

"You are wasting your time my demon friend, that could hold a Mesna-Hydra" Zott mocked happily.

"That's some magic, but how do intend to deal with me?" Dav asked

"The old fashioned way, a fight. One on one with no outside interference from him or the others inside. My partner Yuri is taking care of your friends as we speak…"

"You put too much trust in your partner, between them Zen and Ashura could rip apart a demon army and then have enough energy to win a tournament at the Olympus Coliseum"

"We shall see, now let us dance…" Zott said while standing with his sword extended, pointing at Dav menacingly.

"I accept, lets go!"

A8A

Meanwhile in the bowels of the mountainous lair Ashura and Zen had ran into trouble of their own. In a large room where many crates were stacked up to the ceiling Yuri, along with ten soldiers had caught the two fighters unprepared.

"Hmm… so you are the ones we are to deal with… this will be easy" Yuri scoffed at Ashura and Zen who had been pinned down behind a large supply crate by gunfire.

"Dav could have been useful here…" Ashura whispered as he rested his back up against the crate.

"What are we going to do then?"

"Well… I haven't tried this in a long time so I don't now if it will work. I'll draw their fire then you can strike" Ashura informed Zen who nodded in agreement.

Ashura closed his eyes to focus and then literally jumped into shadows. Zen blinked at his sudden disappearance and then waited for his chance. Ashura meanwhile was now stood behind the soldiers who were pelting the box with unrelenting machine gun fire. Being as quiet as possible Ashura crept forward and raised his arm toward one soldier's head. In one fluid motion he brought his fist directly in between the unfortunate man's shoulder blades and a snap was heard but still the gunfire continued. He kicked another in the small of the back and then twisted the head violently so the neck snapped. By now the remaining eight soldiers noticed him and turned their attention to him. He kicked the barrel of one machine gun away just as the trigger was squeezed and the bullets ripped another solider apart. Zen leapt over the crate and ran over to the nearest soldier and removed his head in one katana swipe. They dealt with the remainder of the soldiers in seconds leaving Yuri to fight by himself. He glared at the two who now were advancing on him.

"Impressive… but it ends here I'm afraid. These soldiers were merely underlings and are easy to dispatch. I on the other hand will see to it that Rayden's will be done and you two will be eliminated"

"Okay, if you say so" Ashura said with a smirk.

"You dismiss me too quickly as a threat, and for that you will pay" Yuri detached a set of midnight black claws from his belt and fitted them onto his hands. He rushed forward and aimed a clawed fist at Ashura's head who caught the attack by his wrist and then punched him in the face. Yuri however was quick and brought his other hand up quickly and swiped his sharp claws across Ashura's face who stepped back and flinched as the claw marks drew blood. Zen moved forward and brought his katana to meet Yuri's head in a kill attempt but it was a big mistake. He ducked under the attack, trapped his arm in an arm lock and then drove his knee into Zen's abdomen twice and then flipped him painfully onto his back. Ashura tried to intervene but the young assassin was too quick for the slower more powerful Ashura who fell to the floor after a well placed back handed strike.

A8A

Dav meanwhile was having trouble with his opponent who blocked any attack attempts with his scimitar and then countered with his Gauntlet. Zalak meanwhile was reduced to stand in place because of his magical bonds and watch Dav take a trouncing. The Gauntlet clad hand of Zott found a place in Dav's jaw after he tried swiping at his chest. _Okay, change of plan_ _Dav _thought as Zott advanced on him again. He sheathed Zantetsuken and hefted the Great Blade off his back and held it in position out in front of him. Zott broke into a run and aimed straight for Dav's head but he used the Great Blade to pole vault over his head and land a kick in Zott's back. However Zott was quicker than Dav thought as he got back to his feet after being knocked down and grabbed Dav by the throat.

"Not much of a fight. Alas we must end our deadly tango with the death of one of the dancers" Zott mocked as he held the Scimitar to Dav's throat. Dav however had other plans, he reached down to where his guns were resting and grasped the handle of one tightly. As Zott pulled his arm back to deliver the final strike Dav whipped the gun round to the front and held it at his abdomen.

_BANG BANG _

Zott loosened his grip on Dav and dropped to the floor on his knees with the bullet holes in his stomach oozing blood steadily. He looked up at Dav who was now standing over him grinning.

"I forgot to tell you, I use less conventional methods of one on one combat. Game over, you lose"

"He's right!" Zalak agreed with a grin and a nod as Dav's expression lost its playfulness and was replaced by pure seriousness. He raised the arm which he held the gun with and smacked it across Zott's forehead killing him on impact. As the body hit the ground the green energy pulsating around Zalak's arms faded and he flexed his arms to get the feeling back.

"That was anti-climactic don't you think?" Dav asked Zalak while retrieving his Great Blade that was discarded after the pole vault manoeuvre.

"Yeah… what the hell was that magic?" Zalak asked with a serious expression

"I don't know, possibly white magic. Demons are generally evil and so for magic to effect an evil entity so much must be white or holy magic"

"…Smart ass…"

A8A

"Had enough yet? Just surrender and this will end. It will just result in your deaths but that doesn't matter to me" Yuri mocked as he again hit Ashura in the face again.

"I think its time we get serious" Ashura said while glaring at Yuri who seemed surprised at what he said.

Before Yuri could do anything Ashura had rushed toward him and planted a strong right hand into his gut. Straight over Ashura's head came Zen who drove the katana's hilt into his jaw. Yuri flew backwards and hit the rocky wall hard but had no time to recuperate because Ashura had again charged forward and planted a powerful left hook to his face. Hitting the wall again he coughed and then fell to the floor. Zen looked at his face once and then drove the katana through his back and out through his chest. Silently he collapsed to the floor and a small puddle of blood formed around him.

"…Ashura, can you read me?" Dav's voice came from seemingly nowhere.

Ashura lifted his left arm level with his mouth and spoke into is armguard. "Yeah, whats the situation?"

"_Just had an RM to deal with, but I disposed with him" _

"Us too, he is just how I like them, dead. But we had 10 BI's to deal with as well, we got the worse fight"

"_Actually I had to deal with the RM on my own 'caus Zalak was stopped by some weird magic so we are about even"_

What is an RM?" Zen asked coolly.

"An RM stands for a Rival Merc and a BI is a Basic Infantry"

"Oh, I see"

"_HI Zenny-Chan!" _came Zalak's voice over the comm link.

"_Hey, give me that back" _Dav's voice replied sounding irritated.

"_No!"_

_THWACK_

"_That's better, anyway we'll stay at here and secure the entrance. You guys try to find that terminal with the info we need, okay?" _Dav asked over the radio

"Right" Ashura replied.

Will they find the console they are looking for or will they give up and go home? Find out in chapter 4!


	4. Dead Serious

The Hunter Becomes The Hunted

Chapter 4: Dead Serious

Authors Notes: I'm back… again! Well enjoy chapter 4 because it is different from the other chapters. The first three chapters were more light hearted but this this has a lot more angst.

Author Credit: This chapter is dedicated to MAS and Dark because their work gave me an incentive to continue writing! Thanks guys!

Story Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts belongs to Square Enix, Xiaolin Showdown belongs to Christy Hui and Devil May Cry 3 belongs to Capcom (from which I borrowed Demon models). Zalak, Zen and Ashura Dragoon are property of Dark and MAS respectively and Dav Strife and the one hit wonder enemies belong to me.

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Gunfire is not something one would associate with Zen or Zalak but thanks to the latter that is exactly the situation they were in. How do you fight a platoon of armed guards who have fully automatic weapons ready to blow you to smithereens? Easy, have a demented mind like Zalak. Of course it helps when you have a gun toting teenage mercenary on your side.

The four warriors were currently on the receiving end of one of Rayden's elite patrols who have the orders to kill on site. Ducked behind the remains of a small guard building that Zalak decided to blow up the four could do nothing but sit tight and wait for the right moment. They had just come from a small facility inside a cave owned by Rayden to retrieve the location to his whereabouts and they found exactly what they needed. However upon arriving at the evil man's lair more than just a few demons awaited them. That brought them into the position they were in.

"What do we do now?" Zen snapped at Zalak who didn't seem worried.

"I don't know, ask the 'mercenaries' over there" Zalak asked with a hint of sarcasm.

"They are in a standard position, two rows of guards. One row fires while the other reloads. Once the attackers run dry the second group take over and so on" Ashura informed the team grimly.

"Why don't we just go after them now?" Dav questioned simply.

"Want a list?" Zalak retorted with a greater level of sarcasm than before.

"Well, Ashura can do that melding into the shadows thing, you can appear in other people's shadow and I can warp between places when I want.. Or did you forget? While we distract them Zen can then join in"

"Sounds like a plan!" Zalak added excitedly.

"Easy there demon, we must time our attack just right…"

As Ashura finished his sentence Zalak stood to his full height and then literally sunk into his own shadow effectively disappearing. Ashura was about to protest but Dav became surrounded in a yellow glow and then disappeared as well leaving the older mercenary to groan and then lose himself in the shadow of the building. Zen placed one hand on his katana's hilt and waited for the chance to strike. Sounds of one soldier gurgling told him that Zalak had begun to work his magic and then a few handgun shots could be heard signalling that Dav had attacked. Taking three kunai daggers into his free hand Zen ran round the side of the building to join the fray. Each knife connecting with the windpipe of three different soldiers and his katana dispatched two more in one slice. Within minutes the entire platoon of soldiers had been put down by the combined skills of the fighters. As Dav, Ashura and Zen made sure the place was clear Zalak decided to indulge on a little blood but found something interesting. As he lifted the helmet of one of the dead soldiers he noticed that the facial features were not human at all. The eyes were slits and two more slits occupied the space where the nose should have been. The mouth had thin black lips and a slender forked tongue hung limply from the corner of it's mouth. The skin itself was dry and rough to the touch and the hair was silver and had the density of straw.

Disgusted Zalak discarded the body and then looked at the building they were about to break into. He joined Dav who was inspecting another of the deceased demons with interest. A cold wind blew across the battle field and this alone caused all four to tense up, Zalak especially who was acting uncharacteristically by keeping serious during a situation. The creepy tone of Rayden echoed throughout the facility they were stood in which sent a chill down everyone's spine.

_Planning on ending our little game so soon? This displeases me so I intend to do something about it. I have been quite reasonable towards you but I'm afraid that will stop now._

"Setting demons on us and trying to kill us is reasonable?" Dav yelled to the disembodied voice which replied with a sinister chuckle.

_You have no idea what you are getting yourselves into fools! I have powers beyond your reckoning! Tell me… have you ever encountered the un-dead before?_

"Are you being serious?" Zen replied in a surprised tone. "You have seen too many movies Rayden!"

_Mwahahahahaha… How very amusing, but if you'll excuse me I have business to attend to… however I shall leave my soldiers to deal with you…_

"Newsflash baka!" Zalak mocked. "I killed them quite easily… and they helped a bit I suppose"

_But are they…?_

The corpses littered around the feet of the four warriors began to twitch and writhe on the ground. As if they were a single conscious they all sat up at once, a vacant look in their eyes. They rose to their feet while letting a moan escape their lips as if they were processed.

"Impossible!" Ashura yelled at the sight of the re-animated bodies.

"This can't be happening!" Dav chirped in.

"This is unusual…" Zalak pondered to himself.

While the others looked on at the advancing horde of things Zalak seized one of Dav's guns and started blasting the monsters away without remorse. Snapping to their senses the others began dispatching the 'zombies' in different ways. Dav launched all the fire spells he could muster at the encroaching abominations while Ashura tried knocking their heads off with his fists and it seemed to be working quite well. Zen used his Kunai daggers to sever the connection between the head and the torso, the neck. The thick nauseating scent of smouldering flesh filled the air and the nostrils of the four warriors who stared in disbelief at the ring of corpses surrounding them.

"I can't believe he commands the dead…" Ashura uttered quietly.

"I'm sorry" Dav whispered sombrely to the dead. "Demons or human, no one deserves that fate. Reduced to the base instinct of hunger and nothing more. Devoid of emotion except sadness and primal anger with their personalities robbed. They should be allowed to rest"

"They're only demons spiky" Zalak laughed.

"And what are you?" Dav said simply that caused Zalak's eyes to widen in shock.

Without uttering another word Dav headed for the entrance to the facility followed by Ashura who seemed slightly moved by what he said. Zen silently pursued them leaving Zalak standing among the death they had dealt.

"They're just demons…"

A8A

The four warriors had entered the facility and found a worse sight than what happened outside. What was supposed to be a reception area was littered with bodies of both men and women lying in their own blood. The blood was also smeared onto the walls and wherever else it could possibly go.

"This place must have been a normal workplace for these people… He doesn't own this place and yet he murders everyone in here and moves in. Even leaving the dead to rot where they dropped. We are dealing with a necromancer and a madman" Dav spoke softly while kneeling down beside a young woman's corpse.

"I would never have imagined we would be dealing with the dead" Ashura added his own thoughts to the dark ones that had already been spoken.

"There is more of them…" Zen informed the others quietly.

As if on cue the bodies of the recently slaughtered began to rise and groan like the guards outside. The young female that Dav was near attempted to take a bite out of his leg but Ashura drove his boot through its head which sent brain matter all over the place including the sole of one of his precious boots. The one nearest to Zen grabbed onto his neck while moaning hungrily. It pulled its head back to take the plunge but a clawed hand grabbed onto the zombie's head and pulled it off with a snapping of the neck bones. Zalak tossed the head aside and knocked the head of a plump female off, her glasses still on her face, until its head became detached from its body anyway. Zen stood looking at Zalak for a moment due to the fact he had possibly just saved his life. Shrugging it off he sent his katana slicing through the neck of the one of the attacking dead. Dav swept a zombie's legs from beneath it and then kicked its head sharply granting it eternal rest. The last of the dead were dealt with by Zen who had remained strangely quiet through the whole scenario and Zalak who seemed slightly spooked by the thought of being hunted by a guy who controls the dead.

"We should split up and search the ground floor. Getting rid of anything that roams down here will prevent problems later on. I shall sweep the left side of the facility while you should take the right" Ashura advised Dav who simply nodded in agreement and without uttering a word left through a set of double doors to the east of the reception area.

"Hold on Spiky!" Zalak shouted after Dav as he strolled through the doors Dav had gone through.

"Lets go then" Zen told Ashura who left for the back of the reception area.

A8A

"So, how you think he's doing it?" Zalak enquired, trying to strike up some kind of conversation from the stoic blonde.

"………"

"Oh come on, I've done worse things than raise the dead!" Zalak yelled in frustration that alerted more zombies to thier whereabouts.

Sighing Dav burst into a large lounge area where the groaning of the dead was coming from. The room itself was simplistic with beige colour walls with basic sofas lining three of the walls and a lone water cooler took up residence on the fourth wall. There were a group of seven zombies all rising from the seats that had once been on their break chatting away unaware of the horrible fate that was going to befall them. Bullets to their heads silenced them quickly enough but one remained buried in the pile of the other corpses still alive. Dav watched it shove its way out of its dead kin's bodies and advance on him with the same soulless look on its face. Its eyes were white, the pupils disappeared completely. The zombie was no more than a child's height who would have been aged around 8, blood all around its lips as if had been feasting on the other corpses. It stumbled towards him slowly and clumsily but Dav did not raise his gun to it. Instead he just watched it amble towards him. A deep sadness inside of him threatening to paralyse him with grief for the lost little girl. But he shook his head and raised his gun level with the zombie's head and looked away.

"It's either you or me, I'm sorry"

BANG

_Silence_

Zalak meanwhile had stumbled into what appeared to be small supply room lined to the ceiling with boxes of paper and office stationary. There were only two bodies in this room, one leaned up against a large supply crate clutching its chest with blood all over its clothes and a huge bite mark in the side of its neck. The other was active and was standing over its prey with blood dripping from its mouth and an empty, hungry look in its eyes. As Zalak opened the door to the room it instinctively turned around and eyed its new meal up. Greatly underestimating Zalak it reached out for him and grabbed his arm in an attempt to snack but the demon was having none of it. He jerked his arm backwards and the zombie fell to the floor and didn't move. However it was dead, simply pretending. Zalak obliterated it with a Shadow Shockwave, shrugged and left the room all the while ignoring the second corpse.

A8A

Ashura and Zen meanwhile had opted to stay together keeping belief that there is safety in numbers. Although that obviously was not working for the undead. Both the serious faced warriors had continued down the corridor that lead from the reception area and found there to only be two other doors despite the its length. The first door was on their right and contained a simple office layout with a desk and a black leather office chair that was faced away from the door to look out at the landscape surrounding the facility. Ashura closed the door behind them and stood guard in case anything tried to force its way in. Zen drew his blade and pushed the back of the chair with its flat side so that it spun around and revealed one man sat in the chair who was still breathing, if only slow and unsteadily. Zen instantly rushed to the man's side and checked his pulse and realised that he was still alive. The man was dressed in a white shirt with a tie and black trousers and well polished shoes. His shirt was spotless apart from a small patch of blood on his shoulder where something impaled him and then being taken out. The man, who had a name tag clipped onto his shirt called Jerry was barely conscious. But as Zen moved to get a better view of him from the front Jerry looked up quickly and started to panic at the man with ears looking back at him.

"Please… don't k… kill me.." He uttered in between pitiful sobs.

"I won't, I would never. You are going to be fine… what happened in here?"

"Well… I… was in the lobby talking to the receptionist... When a man walked through the doors and came straight up to the desk. He was… followed….by a troupe of guards who carried guns and knives. He nodded to 'em and they began shooting everyone in the lobby. One…. of the guards stabbed in the… shoulder... I was lucky to survive. But they… they" Jerry lurched forward in a fit of coughs which worried Zen and Ashura but he then settled himself back into his chair. "Sorry… anyway… I waited… until the guards and their….leader moved on and then… crawled to my office…. In here…. But now I hear groans and movement but they don't sound human…"

"Thanks… We'll get you out of here… Some how…" Zen said, trying to put Jerry at ease.

"No… I know I'm dying… save yourselves… before they get you…" Jerry stopped breathing and slumped gently into his chair. His eyes shut and his head lolling to the side lifelessly, dead.

"We better move on now we know it definitely was 'him'. He is in a better place, not having to suffer the torment of turning into one of them" Ashura spoke softly.

They both exited the room and Ashura twisted the key in the door's lock, keeping Jerry's body away from the blood thirsty zombies. Ashura discarded the key in a plant pot next to the door and they both moved on to the other door. Turning the door's handle slowly Ashura entered first followed by Zen. They walked straight into an large open plan office with, yes you guessed it, zombies littered all over the place. Sat on chairs, laid on the ground, slumped over desks or stood up wandering around the room aimlessly, that is until Zen and Ashura entered. All of them rose and turned toward the two and began their advance.

"This will be a messy affair" Ashura uttered as he got ready for possibly his last fight.

A8A

Zalak crossed the hall they were in and stood in the doorway of the lounge Dav had secured. Before he could say anything Dav raised his gun so it became level with Zalak's head. The demon looked at Dav's face to find an answer to what he was doing and found only a sad look in his eyes. His grip on the gun was causing his knuckles to turn white at the sheer force he was using to grip the weapon. His finger hovered over the trigger for a few seconds and then began to squeeze it.

"What the hell spiky?" Zalak barked but it was ignored.

BANG

A body collapsed and hit the floor with a loud thud.

_Silence_


	5. Demons and Zombies Oh My

The Hunter Becomes The Hunted

Chapter 5: Demon and Zombies Oh My!

Authors Notes: It continues, so enjoy!

Story Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts belongs to Square Enix, Xiaolin Showdown belongs to Christy Hui and Devil May Cry 3 belongs to Capcom (from which I borrowed Demon models). Zalak, Zen and Ashura Dragoon are property of Dark and MAS respectively and Dav Strife and the one hit wonder enemies belong to me.

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Zalak forced his eyes closed waiting for the bullet to impact. But his mind was screaming with questions that would go unanswered as he went to his death. _But why here and now? On the verge of catching up to Rayden and ending it all Dav decides to take the shot now? I haven__'t provoked him in any way and yet he stands in the middle of a zombie infested building and wants to kill the one who is still living? _

Zalak could tell by the vibrations in the air that Dav was in the process of squeezing the trigger, the entire event going by at a snail's pace. And then it came. Without a word or even a sound from Dav he put enough pressure on the trigger and the bullet ripped through the air straight in the direction of Zalak's head. The reincarnated demon braced himself, tensing his body up ready for the impact of the bullet. However as he prepared for death he heard a sound like a sack of potatoes being dropped. Risking looking Zalak opened one eye slowly and saw Dav stood with his gun still extended and smoke rising from out of its barrel. The demon relaxed a little then caught the scent of something dead… like a zombie! He turned to find a zombie propped up against the wall opposite the door with its head exploded by a bullet. Its contents now decorating the wall a lovely red and grey mix. Zalak took his gaze from the corpse to Dav and then back again not quite believing what had just happened

Dav tossed the gun he had used to slay the zombie to Zalak who caught it while still being astonished. Dav then drew his second weapon and slipped by Zalak and out into the corridor and onto the next room. Staring at the corpse for a few seconds longer Zalak gripped the gun and followed Dav toward the next room.

When Zalak caught up with the blonde he was stood outside of a set of double doors waiting for him to catch up. Dav and Zalak glanced at each other momentarily and then moved in. Zalak kicked the door so hard that it flew off the hinges and collided with three zombies who were reduced to rotten mush against the wall. Filing into the room in question they both noticed Zen and Ashura surrounded by the undead on all sides. The horde seemed intent on taking them as their meal and failed to realise Dav and Zalak had even entered. The two opened fire on the zombies aiming for their heads for quick kills. As their rotting comrades dropped with no heads the other zombies began to turn and slowly shuffle their way towards Dav and Zalak. Distracted by the walking corpses changing targets Zen lowered his guard to rest which was a big mistake. A rather big zombie that at one point had been a security guard ambled up to Zen and grabbed his arm roughly. Zen, who was temporarily shocked that one had managed to grab him tried to pull his arm free from its grip but it was too strong. Zen was jerked forward by his arm and the zombie took its chance and sunk its teeth into the wolf man's arm. Its teeth ripped the flesh like scissors cutting paper and blood welled up in the wound and began to flow down his arm and onto the floor. Moaning hungrily the zombie drew back for another bite but Ashura rushed over to it and knocked its head off which splattered against the wall. The body released the grip on Zen's arm and slumped to the floor dead. Ashura grabbed the injured arm and inspected the wound as Zen's vision began to distort and become blurry thanks to blood loss and the sheer pain.

Cursing loudly Ashura yelled over to Dav who responded with a nod and began to work his way through the tide of the dead.

"Zalak, do something about these things!" Dav yelled as he shot one in the head and sliced another in two. The feeling of sympathy melting away as he saw Zen and his bite wound.

"Got it Spiky!" Zalak replied loudly.

He jumped into an opening in the middle of the zombie crowd and charged dark energy in his arms. The nega-energy spread to the rest of his body and black electricity danced up and down his person. Raising his arms above his head he yelled "Sin Carnage!". The gathered energy around his body spread to the surrounding area and then continued on into all free space in the room. A dark flash blinded Dav who was just about at Zen's side as it worked its magic on the zombies. Their already decomposing bodies were torn like tissue paper under the immensely powerful attack. Pained groans echoed throughout the room as the undead were ripped apart and killed again. The remnants of the energy cleared as Dav was now looking at the wound on Zen's arm.

"…What can I do?" Dav asked quietly.

"I…don't know… Anything… the pain is… unbearable" Zen stuttered as he leaned on Ashura who was supporting him.

Dav looked at the expression on Zen's face and then at the blood pouring from the wound and then finally at the remains of the zombies that Zalak had disposed of. A feeling began to build in his chest that threatened to burst out of him and drive him crazy. It was not sadness or pity, it was rage. He extended his outstretched hand over the wound and summoned every last spark of magic he pocessed and directed it at Zen's arm. Instead of the traditional green aura that came with a healing spell a blue magic aura surrounded the injured warrior and gathered mostly at the arm. The magic began to sink into the arm and up into his body working its way through Zen's systems. The bleeding quickly slowed and stopped and skin began to seal itself as if cauterised by fire. The sparks faded and Dav stumbled backwards and blacked out on the floor due to extreme strain the magic caused. Zen who was watching the spectacle through hazy eyes and gritted teeth noticed the pain subsiding slightly but the main body of it stayed, still threatening to knock him out. Something unexpected happened though, in seconds darkness took him and he fell into a painless sleep.

Ashura saw Zen slump onto a chair behind him and then to Zalak who had his fist raised in the air. Ashura was about to raise his own but Zalak held both hands up in surrender.

"Hey, he won't feel pain will he?… He'll just have a headache afterwards, that's all" Zalak argued, with a chuckle added at the ending comment.

"I suppose, both of them are out… Great, now what do we do? At least this floor is cleared of the things…" Ashura replied to Zalak who shrugged.

"We better wait for now eh? This place seems safe enough, right?"

Dav began to stir thanks to the voices of his two allies. He sat up suddenly and reached for his discarded gun and then he remembered what had just happened.

"…Ugh… How is he?" Dav questioned while suffering from an aching body.

"The wound was repaired by what ever you did" Zalak informed him flatly.

"That's it?" Dav said while looking at Zalak expectantly. "No sarcasm or insults to add?"

"Nope"

"Am I really awake or is this a dream? You being nice is not the normal routine yo"

Zalak simply chuckled and then walked out of the double doors and onto the lobby.

"Ashura, go with him incase _you know who _shows up. I'll watch the wolf boy here" Dav advised tiredly.

"Will do, but are YOU okay?"

"Fine, not an ounce of magic left though but I'll live dude. You get going"

"Fine"

"Oh… and be careful, I don't think Zalak is his usual self"

"Noted" Ashura replied with a quiet laugh

"I heard that!" Zalak yelled from down the corridor.

Once Ashura had left the room Dav looked at the sleeping Zen and then to his hands. Shaking the thoughts of such powerful magic off he hauled himself off the floor amid the zombie carcasses and stretched his limbs lazily. The only sound that was now in the room was the light breathing of Zen as he slept. That is until that familiar voice resonated in Dav's head.

_Interesting… the wolf man there should have turned into a mindless killing machine by now…_

"How little you know" Dav hissed to the air itself.

_Is that so? And a juvenile upstart like you knows more than me? Why, you must be no older than 17 and yet you think you know everything._

"Nope, I know two things for sure. One, you can't win. You've thrown human and demon armed guards at us, demons both big and small and even zombies and yet we are all alive. The second thing is that by the end of the day you will be another body on a mortuary slab when we get a hold of you. So stop mouthing off and just wait quietly for us to come and kill you"

…_..Mwahahahahahahaha….._

_A8A_

Zalak had made his way to the lobby where he lounged in a comfy white leather arm chair that was usually reserved for someone waiting for something from the reception. As he rested his boots on a corpse in front of the chair Ashura wondered in with a stoic expression on his face.

"Having a rest?"

"Sure am! Pull up a chair, we can have a bonfire with the bodies!" Zalak joked.

"Your brother could have died and you just joke like nothing happened?" Ashura asked slightly angry.

"Meh, we've never got along. He is always getting in my way and foiling my plans… It is strictly a business relationship!" Zalak replied lazily.

"Why do I bother…?" Ashura questioned himself as he wondered down the corridor that Dav and Zalak had cleared earlier.

_A8A_

Shuffling behind him brought Dav from his day dreaming. His gun was pointing at the disturbance which was no zombie but turned out to be Zen rousing from his sleep. Relaxing, Dav holstered his gun and walked away from Zen and toward the door to see if anything was around. Zen blinked a few times so his eyes could get used to the poor lighting of the office they were in and noticed Dav standing at the door. He tried to sit up but all his joints seemed so heavy and tired so he decided on returning to his former position. Dav noticed Zen struggling to sit up and walked over to him with a forced grin on his face.

"How you feeling?"

"I'm okay... my arms and legs feel really heavy though"

"A side effect of the magic I guess" Dav explained. "I've never done that before so I don't know what will happen"

"Thanks for the vote of confidence" Zen remarked sarcastically.

"No problem, you are something else though"

"Meaning?"

"Normally, if the movies are right you should have turned into one of them. I know any magic I have couldn't have protected you from it so it must be your own strength"

"There is more to me than meets the eye" Zen replied weakly.

"No doubt… Oh no… not now…" Dav sighed worriedly.

"What?" Zen asked worriedly.

"Demons are coming… hide under a desk quickly!" Dav ordered. "Your in no condition to fight"

"You don't look in the best of shape either…"

"Just do it!" Dav yelled as the sounds of shattered glass rang out all around the room

As the demons emerged from their portals like usual Zen managed to 'fall' off the chair he was on and crawl under the nearest desk to him. Dav stood ready for the demons but all he had was one gun to defend himself. Before any of the demons could launch an attack Dav shot one straight through its skull and then punched another one in the same place. A swift kick to the kneecaps and three more gun shots to the head settled four more demons down. He then picked up a chair and swung it at one demon which sent it catapulting into a wall and then it crumbled into sand. Going low to avoid being sliced in half with a sickle strike Dav swept the attacker's legs from under it and drove the chair onto its head. One of the three remaining attackers threw its sickle at Dav who dove behind a desk for cover and then shot the demon in its chest. As it stumbled back the blonde improviser removed a circular clock from the wall above the desk he was shielded by and sent it spinning into it. The last two jumped on to the desk and swiped down at him forcing him to roll under the desk and then push it over, sending the last two Reaper demons plummeting to the ground off the desk which then landed on top them, ending their lives.

Dav panted heavily as he checked the bullets in his gun, four left before he ran dry. His swords he had left in the corner of the office and was too preoccupied to get them. Now retrieving Zantetsuken, his Buster Blade and his supplies he helped Zen up onto the chair he was once sat on.

"Interesting way of fighting"

"Thanks" Dav said with a genuine smile on his face for the first time since they had entered the facility.

"Oh, and Dav…"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for earlier"

"It's okay, your not used to this are you?"

"Thanking people, no"

"Heh, your anti-social"

"Am not, I don't have a problem with people. People have a problem with me"

"I don't"

"You're a first then"

"I don't know why I am 'cause your not so bad... but I wasn't there when you grew up so I'll say nothing more"

"No, you wasn't"

A8A

"These are easy!" Zalak exclaimed as he knocked a Reaper down and crushed its skull underfoot.

"They never were hard demon" Ashura corrected as he sent three flying with one sweeping blow.

"Wonder how Zenny-chan and Spiky-baka are doing" Zalak said with a smirk.

"Hopefully... they are well enough to defend themselves" Ashura replied.

Ashura finished off the last one and looked toward his unlikely ally who was staring at a set of stairs. Ashura joined him at his side and looked where Zalak was staring at and saw nothing but darkness. Shrugging Ashura exited the facility to check the outside area of the facility. Zalak tore his gaze away from the stairs and joined him to find nothing outside except the zombie corpses they had put down earlier.

"What was so interesting up there? All I saw was darkness"

"Zombies, and lots of them"

"How did you know?"

"Could hear them groaning like someone had kicked them in the…"

"…I get the picture" Ashura halted Zalak who grinned manically.

"We better get back so we can move on up there and put those things out of their misery"

"Who, Zen and Dav or the zombies?" Zalak joked.

"Ugh"

A8A

"Feeling any better now?" Dav asked Zen who was by now standing up easily.

"Yeah, I don't feel tired any more"

"Good, but I'm still out of magic so don't get injured again dude"

"It isn't a regular thing you know…"

"No doubt. Lets go meet… Hello!"

"What?"

"Zombies"

"Where? I don't see them"

"Out there, look"

Dav motioned towards the window of the office and as he said several of the creatures were wondering about without a purpose or a mission in their pitiful lives. Dav watched them wonder about with blood all over their faces and no longer felt remorse for them, quite the opposite in fact. The grounds around the building they were in was simple enough. A high nine foot fence surrounded the place with two other small buildings, one at each side of where they were. The undead scourge were at the back of the main building on a car park which was encased in a foliage wall of dark green bushes of about eight feet.

"What do we do about them?" Dav asked Zen who was watching them intently.

"Leave 'em" Zen stated simply.

"No, I can't. Look over there" Just in sight of the window Ashura was walking around the grounds completely unaware of the zombies. The bushes blocked his view of them. Dav hopped onto a desk and then jumped straight at the window kamikaze style and shattered it. In seconds he had his sword in his hands and sliced clean through the bushes as he came to them, still in mid jump. The zombies all saw him and advanced for the kill. Ashura also noted the smash and opted to investigate. He ran at the wall of the building, planted one foot on it and launched himself off it and over the bushes to land next to Dav who didn't seemed surprised to see him jump the distance at all.

"Ready partner?" Ashura asked confidently.

"Never been more ready… Go!"

Dav and Ashura charged straight for the group of twelve strong zombies.


	6. The Balance Between Life and Death

The Hunter Becomes The Hunted

Chapter 6: The Balance Between Life and Death

Authors Notes: Back for more!

Story Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts belongs to Square Enix, Xiaolin Showdown belongs to Christy Hui and Devil May Cry 3 belongs to Capcom (from which I borrowed Demon models). Zalak, Zen and Ashura Dragoon are property of Dark and MAS respectively and Dav Strife and the one hit wonder enemies belong to me.

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Sword met flesh, fist met bodies. Dav and Ashura stood back to back with the zombies stood around them in a semi-circle. Zantetsuken cut limbs off the undead cleanly while Ashura's brute strength knocked their heads and other parts off messily. As the last of the zombies fell to Dav's blade Ashura looked back to the building and the window that Dav had jumped out of. The sound of metal meeting sheath was all that greeted Ashura as he turned to face Dav. With his weapon back in its sheath (which he carried in his left hand) Dav nodded to Ashura who pointed upwards towards the room.

"They have already left for Rayden. We should catch them up"

"They can take care of themselves you know. But I'm not standing out here all day freezing my butt off either, let's go".

A8A

Ashura and Dav reached the stairwell that lead to the upper floor without any hassle. Neither did they wait for some to find them. Instead they headed straight up to find their allies. They walked down a long and dark corridor with only one door at the end of it. Dav approached the door and examined it only to find it was made of steel and was locked tightly. He shrugged and turned to Ashura who tightened the Gauntlet on his right hand.

"We will be through in no time" He said with a determined look on his face.

"Okay, just don't hurt the door _TOO _bad"

"Not funny"

Ashura lifted back his right hand and then lashed out at the door. The first impact made a small dent but nothing more. Undeterred he prepared for another strike when something caught both his and Dav's attention. The wall to the side of Dav exploded outwards sending bits of concrete and dust all over the hallway. The wall on the other side of the hallway was next to go, this time the debris flying into the next room. Dav was thrown to the floor as a result of the force of the impact but Ashura remained strong in place. The melee fighter peered into the newly created hole and saw Zen propped up against the far wall of the newly discovered room. He was covered in the powdered concrete, cuts and bruises. Ashura jumped through the hole and ran straight to him while Dav had only just got up.

While Ashura attended to Zen Dav looked into the room Zen had come from. It was a large store room with many wooden crates and a metal walkway above. A ladder ran the length of the wall beside the hole and lead up to the walkway. Within the room stood twelve armed guards, each one wielding a curved sword. Dav shook his head in disbelief at the guards.

"You idiots did this?" He asked in surprise.

The guards however did not respond so Dav entered the room with his samurai sword in hand. The guards all responded by charging him at once.

A8A

"Ugh…"

"Zen…are…… alright? Zen…hear…me?"

Zen looked up with a heavy head. His head was swimming with both pain and dizziness. His vision could not focus and his hearing was greatly impaired. His head lolled backwards leant against the cold wall behind him. Ashura stood over him and continued to try and rouse him into consciousness. A dark figure was all that Zen could see. The person black and their outline blurry stood over him saying something. His vision quickly started to correct itself as the figure became clearer. His hearing also was improving a lot more quickly than that of a normal human would.

"……Ashura?"

"Zen! At last. What happened?"

"Rayden… strong… I didn't… stand… a chance. Where… is... Where is Dav?"

"Gone through to check the other room out"

"We have to back him up!" Zen almost yelled.

He stood up quickly, a little too quickly. His head became dizzy again and he lost his balance completely. Ashura caught him before he fell and rested him back against the wall.

"You are going nowhere just yet…"

Distant sounds caught Zen's attention. His ears pricked up and Ashura simply looked on.

"Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"Groaning… and glass shattering… gunshots… shadow… Oh hell no…"

"What?"

"Dav is alone with everything Rayden could put him against!"

"You mean…?"

"Zombies, Reapers, Guards, Demon Guards. Heartless and hell knows what else!"

"Stay here Zen, I have to go"

"I can't stay here… I'm coming with you"

"Fine, just don't fall behind"

Zen smirked at Ashura and followed him out of the room though the new door way slowly. He stopped for a second to steady himself and then gripped the hilt of his katana ready for action. Ashura did not stop, he just leapt from one hole to the other and immediately joined the brawl.

Dav was stood among a large group of Reapers, Zombies and Guards. Ashura burst into the room and instantly noticed all the piles of sand left behind by the Reaper's, dead guards both human and demon and rotting corpses all around the edges of the room. Dav meanwhile ducked under a sword slash and kicked the attacker in the chest. He followed by up cutting off the head of an approaching zombie and then jamming the hilt of his own sword into the Guard's face. A Reaper snuck up from behind and raised its sickle into the air and swung downwards. The blonde knew it was coming so he sidestepped while stabbing through another reaper and then burying his sword into the chest of a demon guard. From the back Ashura ran in and punched the attacking Reaper on top of its skull which caused it to collapse and crumble into sand. A zombie grabbed Dav by the neck and reared back its head ready to bite but he reversed his sword into its stomach and cut upwards. The two halves of the undead employee fell away from the sword which was already slashing through another Reaper.

Ashura snapped the neck on a zombie and then punched directly through one of the Guard's helmet and the pieces of shattered visor cut the guards face badly. He hardly had time to notice the pain from the cuts as Ashura had already shouldered him aside and the Guard fell into the path of a trio of zombies. They saw their opportunity and pinned the Guard to the floor and ripped into his skin. Nobody noticed as the Guard gurgled as blood flowed from him like some kind of gothic fountain. Ashura kicked the legs from under a Reaper and trampled it under his boots as he worked his way to Dav. Zen, who was still on the outside of the room treated a stray zombie to a hilt to the head. He looked over and noticed that his mercenary allies were together in the centre of the room and yelled to them over the noise of dying demons, feasting un-dead and newly appearing Reapers both red and black varieties.

"We have to stop this!!" He yelled.

"I know" Dav yelled slightly muffled as a zombie tackled him to the ground.

"And quickly" Ashura added as he picked the zombie up off Dav by the back of the neck and flung it across the room like it was a ball.

Dav tried to stand back up but a Guard attempted to stab him while he was on the floor so he had to roll out of the way. He gathered energy in his hands and they became enveloped in fire. Two Firaga spells later and both the Guard and a zombie were naught but smouldering corpses. He then started to launch several spells in all directions to thin the enemies numbers. Many of the attackers fell to the constant onslaught of the spells. Zen had to duck at one point as a Firaga spell barely missed him and instead collided with a zombie and exploded.

Ashura added to the magic being used by charging white energy in his own fist and punching the ground with considerable force. The floor under his fist cracked and started to split as the energy seeped into the floor tiles. It returned a few seconds later in the form of an enormous ethereal dragon head that rose from the ground. Its mouth was opened wide and all enemies caught in it were either vaporised or knocked into the walls and killed off by Zen. The dragon head rose to the ceiling but rather than vanishing completely it disappeared and re-emerged turned facing the floor. It roared and made a return trip to the floor and there it disappeared. Just as several Reaper's appeared the dragon descended upon them and turned them all into sand. Dav looked around the room and noticed that the last of the enemies were wiped out by the last attack. He wiped his forehead with the back of his hand and sighed.

"Man, that was unexpected. Zen, are you alright?"

"I'll be fine. Just dazed"

"We better move on into the next room before the floor collapses to the floor below. I think I overdid it slightly"

"Right, to Zalak and the end of Rayden… Permanently!"

"I… don't think we will win…" Zen spoke quietly, bringing an atmosphere of dread to the room.

"Maybe not. But we will try out best at least" Ashura returned stoically as usual.

"Don't be defeatist, we will be fine" Dav tried to assure the other two.

Zen looked at the damaged floor for a moment and then looked directly at Dav with a half smile. "Yeah, you're right"

"Aren't I always?"

"Actually you…" Ashura began

"Rhetorical question Dragoon!" Dav snapped.

"Heh, right. We all know the answer"

"I hate you…" Dav hissed in a low tone which earned a laugh from both his allies.

A8A

**Meanwhile…**

Zalak lashed out at Rayden with his fist. His fist went straight through him. The image flickered and disappeared. The real Rayden appeared behind Zalak kicked him through the wall. The demon hit the floor hard with a groan. He sunk into his own shadow as Rayden stabbed down at the spot where he once was with his Double Bladed Sword. Zalak reappeared behind him with a smirk on his face and he raised his fist. But before he could launch an attack Rayden spun round and grasped him by the throat. Pinned to a wall by un-natural strength Zalak could hardly move as Rayden drove one end of his sword through Zalak and out the other side. Zalak gasped and looked down at the wound where the sword was now imbedded within his own stomach. He began to gag slightly as Rayden released his grip on Zalak's neck and he slid down the wall to the floor with one end of the sword still in his stomach.

Rayden walked away slowly with his back turned to the half demon with a dark smirk. He then stopped half way across the room as if waiting for something to happen. The wound he has caused Zalak had bled all over the floor around the demon but now it stopped flowing. Three seconds later Rayden jumped high into the air and landed on the next level of the building. His sword meanwhile cut through the air where he once stood and slammed into the wall opposite. Zalak, still with his back to the wall, slowly began to stand up. Dark energy pulsed in and around his wound as he glared up at where Rayden was now standing and laughing. Zalak closed his hand into a fist and punched upwards in the direction of the second floor where his opponent stood. A large wave of dark energy flew through the air and tore the floor apart. As Rayden jumped to the third floor to avoid being obliterated the rubble from the explosion collapsed in a large pile in front of the only door in the entire room.

The two were stood in a four storey room that had walkways making up the upper three floors. Various things such as desks, plush seats and computer systems were on each floor in a simple design. Rows of single desks with one computer and a chair lined the walls separated by temporary walls. There was then a corridor between the temporary walls and the white waist high wall stopping people falling down to the ground floor. The roof itself had a massive skylight which domed at the top to make a glass dome allowing you to see the sky.

Zalak looked up to the dome and Rayden laughed once more.

"Interesting. You think your friends will come in through there? I hate to disappoint you but they are not allowed into my battleground"

He raised one hand towards the sky with two fingers pressed together and then flicked his wrist. In mere moments a shell of lime green energy covered the skylight entirely casting an eerie glow on the whole interior.

"That will stop them from crashing my party"

Zalak responded by laughing at the maniacal Necromancer. "No it won't! Davey and Drag Queen are not demons!"

"So you remember my special anti-demon magic then… The Balance is technically a demon you see my dear Zalak. The philosophers of old called his kind a Hume-Demon. This means he is essentially human with abilities and powers usually granted to demons. Because of these "abilities" he could be classed as super human and his manipulation of both the dark and light realms only adds to this power. In my own research about him I found that he is the last in a race of people known as the Altariens. His home world was as many others blitzed by the Heartless but he was saved because of the Balance powers within him when he was a child. He was transferred to Destiny Islands by his own power at the time of the invasion. Thus he grew up there"

"And he called me a demon!" Zalak yelled in half amusement and half pain.

"Indeed. That is why I needed to lure you here with him and your brother. Once you three are out of the way I can begin worlds domination. Dragoon is just a bonus"

"Blah blah blah" Zalak mocked. "Let me just kick your ass so I can get back to annoying Chase Young… it's the only hobby I have nowadays… that and killing the dragons"

"Very well demon… Prepare for the end!"

A8A

"That is what I said" Ashura began "The demon barrier prevents either you or Zen from entering. The door is barricaded as far as I can tell and the walls are far too thick to break through"

"Not a lot of options" Dav mused to himself. "Where's Zen?"

"He said something about utility funnels"

"Don't you mean tunnels?"

"Probably" Ashura said with a shrug. "I did not hear him properly"

"Well, we better find a way in there or else Zalak will be toast…"

"Shall we go for a drink?"

"Sure"

A8A

Zen was wondering around the lobby and all the rooms they had previously cleared out of the zombies earlier. His search only turned up an endless amount of paperwork and rotting flesh, bullet holes and horrible smells. As he traversed the corridors in silence his acute eyesight picked up details he wished they had not. Corpses of all manner ripped apart with bits missing for different reasons. He came to a stop outside of a small room used for resting by the employees, the same room that Dav and Zalak had previously been in. Apart from the small pile of corpses in the middle of the room, the little girl's body near the door and another one sat against the wall outside the door there was one other in the room. Stood with his back to Zen Dav stared out of the window watching the quiet grounds of the facility. The Fenrian walked closer to Dav who did not move at all. Zen sensed that something was not right. He reached out and placed one hand on the blonde's shoulder and he began to turn around.

As he turned Zen withdrew his arm quickly as Dav looked at him. Instead of the confident and cocky expression Zen had come to expect with Dav he saw a blank face. His usually shining blue eyes were replaced by sunken eyeballs which were bloodshot. His mouth was a perfect line making neither a frown nor a smirk. Zen took two steps back as "Dav raised one arm to be level with Zen's head and in his hand was a gun. Dav's very own Sabre to be exact. Without a flicker of expression he pulled the trigger and a bullet left the barrel. However it made no sound at all. Zen blinked a few times and he was staring at a window in an empty room.

A8A

Ashura planted his foot in the middle of a door sending it exploding off its hinges and onto the floor. Inside the room was nothing other than two other doors. Each door the same as the one lying on the floor. He stared at the two doors for a moment and opted for the one opposite him. The door however was not locked and so he opened the door without a sound. The room was the same size as the last but this had no doors lading elsewhere. A desk was in the corner of the room with a swivel chair over turned in front of it. Papers were scattered all over the place. His attention was drawn to the window which was wide open. He glanced out of it and saw a body lying in a pool of its own blood underneath the window. The room was four storeys up and the body looked as if it had fell from that height.

Returning to the previous room he went through the other door. Literally. The splintered wood that was once the door was discarded on the floor. This room too had a desk, a chair and a window like the last. There was also a vent running right through the room and beyond. The melee fighter inspected the hatch and realised he could get through it. So he heaved himself up and shut the grating behind him. Just as he was going to see where the vent lead a figure entered the room. A single walking corpse ambled into the room looking for it's next meal. He ignored the zombie and started to crawl through the cramped vent. After thirty seconds of crawling on hands and knees the unmistakeable sound of a gun sounded followed by something being dropped to the floor dead. Choosing to ignore the gunshot he continued to crawl all the while not knowing where he would end up.

A8A

Zen heard a gunshot thanks to his sensitive hearing and ran in its direction. The sound took him up the stairs that Zalak and Ashura had been staring up earlier and then up three more sets of stairs. He navigated his way through a maze of corridors and then stopped dead. Just inside a room Dav was stood with a gun raised as a zombie lay bleeding on the ground. An image of the earlier Dav flashed before his eyes and then disappeared. This happened three times in a row before Dav turned his head to look at Zen. This time however there was a stoic expression as before but the eyes were normal. The images flashed again and again before Zen's eyes of Dav turning earlier to reveal his sunken eyes. Zen finally gained control of his senses again and shook the images off. Dav looked at him slightly concerned. He took a step forward to Zen but the wolf boy stepped backwards.

"Zen, something wrong?"

"………I don't know…"

"Well I'm definitely confused" the blonde admitted with a smirk.

"…Not the only one" Zen replied slowly. "…Have you… been downstairs in a while?"

"No, why?"

"I thought I saw you… never mind. Must be the concussion" Zen reasoned.

"Yeah that could be it. I wonder where Ashura is…" Dav pondered as he read a piece of paper that was set on the desk. "Got it!"

"What?"

"This says there is a central tunnel that leads right underneath the annex where Zalak is"

"We can get this finished then"

"Yeah, it looks that way"

Dav picked up the piece of paper and looked toward Zen with his trademark smirk. The image flashed one more time in Zen's mind as Dav left the room. Zen took a second to gather himself and then realised Dav had left. He left the room and looked down the corridor.

_Two ways to go… which way…_

**Why just not bother** **at all?**

_Keep quiet…_

A scream of sorts snapped him back into focus. A male scream echoed through out the facility. Zen took off at speeds back down the stairs and found the map Dav had been holding with blood spattered on it and a discarded handgun. A small trail of blood lead off back towards the room their big fight with the zombies had taken place earlier. He scooped up the gun quickly. Following it Zen saw that part of the back wall of the office had opened up to reveal a doorway with the same interior beyond it that the rest of the building sported. The trail of blood seemed to get thicker as it led into the passageway. Zen took no notice of the rotting corpses in the room and took off down the winding passage. Left, right, right, left. The passage took many different turns until it straightened out into a long passage way. At the end of the passageway sat Dav clutching his stomach with a pool forming underneath him. His head lolled to the side unmoving.

Zen ran to his side and knelt down beside him and checked his breathing. _Nothing_. He simply sat there without a murmur or breath escaping his mouth.

"What the hell did this?" Zen whispered.

He moved Dav's arm to reveal a large entry wound. It was extremely thin and long which said only one thing to Zen. A sword. Beside Dav lay his keepsake sword from his brother, Zantetsuken. Zen picked it up and continued down the passageway. Rage burned within him like nothing he had ever felt before. What started as a walk broke into a frantic run. The passageway ended with a dead-end or so it seemed. As Zen came close to the end of the passage the wall swung open to reveal a four storey annex. Within that annex stood Zalak panting heavily slightly slouching and Rayden stood opposite him with his sword held behind him with one hand. His posture was upright and his complexion perfect. His long brown hair looked immaculate as did his sword. He looked at the intruder and smirked darkly.

"Another lamb to the slaughter"

"You… son of a bitch!" Cursed Zen loudly which even surprised Zalak.

"Something wrong?" Rayden asked almost innocently.

"Dav… is dead thanks to you!" The Fenrian snapped.

"He's what?" Zalak yelled in surprise. He then turned back to face Rayden and glared. "You have gone too far! Killing Davey was my job!" Zalak said with a growl.

"Feeling emotion are we demon? The loss of a friend getting to you?"

Zalak narrowed his eyes. "Friend? You've got to be joking"

Rayden ignored that comment and looked toward the domed ceiling. "Looks like we have another guest"

As he announced the arrival of another the vent running at the side of the dome burst outwards and Ashura emerged. He plummeted four storeys to the ground and cracked it beneath his feet. Without a word he delivered an uppercut to Rayden in his jaw. The villain was launched backwards and crashed into he wall behind him causing bits of the wall to fly in all directions. Zen unsheathed Zentetsuken and drew his own weapon and charged for Rayden who was just recovering. Zalak was close on his heels with dark energy running through his body.

A8A

The passage was quiet now with the only the sounds of distant banging and other sounds of battle breaking the silence. The pool of crimson around Dav's body stopped growing in size and now lay there in silence. The expression on the young teen's face was unchanged, lifeless. Everything within the passage silence ruled. The pool of blood however began to quiver slightly and small ripples in its surface began to appear. The sound of footsteps was the next thing to come. The sound grew louder and more apparent joined by a chorus of hungry moans. They grew ever closer and still Dav sat in silence with his eyes closed.


End file.
